Normally the parade would bring 35 to 40 bovines trotting through the streets. Last year, 50 head of cattle were brought in for the spectacle.

“It's a sight to see when you see that many cattle coming (down Houston Street) and you can hear the horns and the hooves,” event organizer Alex Pena said.

The exact number is 110 cattle, arriving from the Thurmond Longhorns ranch in Adkins.

The hourlong parade will cut through downtown Houston Street, beginning under Interstate 35 (next to the CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Children's Hospital) and continue to Alamo Plaza. The parade starts at 11 a.m.

After the herd passes, onlookers will be treated to Fort Sam Houston's caisson section, members of the U.S. Border Patrol on horseback, the Jefferson High School Lassos, Buffalo Soldiers, wagons from all parts of Texas, and myriad of folks in period garb riding horses. Motorized vehicles — nothing on rubber tires, actually — are not allowed in the parade.

“These are authentic wagons, used in the 1800, early 1900s,” Pena said. “Some have been restored and others are original.”

A festival is planned for Alamo Plaza from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., with two chuck wagons serving grub cooked on the spot, and other forms of family entertainment.

The free parade is an official event of the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, which runs Feb. 6-23 at the AT&T Center and Freeman Coliseum.